The preferred embodiments of the present invention generally relate to an adjustable patient table for supporting patients during medical procedures. More particularly, the preferred embodiments of the present invention relate to a telescoping cover that encloses the moving parts of the table while affording a full range of motion to the medical patient support system.
Adjustable patient tables exist in a wide range of medical patient support systems for medical applications, each designed to be used for specific medical procedures. The medical patient support system typically includes two or three essential components, namely a patient support surface that is attached to a support apparatus and an adjustable mechanism that moves the patient table in various directions, including up and down and/or side to side. The adjustable mechanism may be manually operated or may be power assisted. The ability to position patients quickly and accurately during medical procedures is important to clinicians, because stopping a procedure to reposition a patient can be time consuming and sometimes even dangerous.
Conventional medical patient support systems typically provide two degrees of freedom corresponding to lateral roll and tilt. The adjustable mechanism usually includes moving parts that may be dangerous if exposed. There is a need therefore for a system that covers the adjustable mechanism. Additionally, a need has existed for a cover system that does not restrict the patient support system""s operation. A need has also existed for a cover system that is safe, is easy to clean, and is aesthetically acceptable.
Although cover systems have been provided for covering the adjustable mechanism of medical support systems, such cover systems do so at the expense of safety, cleanability and aesthetics. For example, one cover system has been proposed that uses bellows to cover the entire adjustable mechanism. A bellows design, however, is very difficult to clean because it does not provide hard, flat surfaces. A bellows design is also aesthetically unacceptable. Another system has been proposed that uses sheet metal covers that move with the adjustable mechanism. A sheet metal design, however, is unsafe because the metal covers could potentially pinch the patient or care taker""s skin in between the metal covers when the system is moving. A sheet metal system is also aesthetically unacceptable.
A need, therefore, exists for an improved medical patient support system that provides a patient table permitting a full range of motion of the patient table while enclosing the adjustable mechanism in a safe, easy to clean and aesthetically acceptable way.
In accordance with at least one preferred embodiment of the present invention, a medical patient support system is provided comprising a patient support surface, a support mechanism, a base and a cover system for enclosing the support mechanism. The cover system includes telescoping cover panels. The cover system encloses the support mechanism as the support mechanism moves the patient table up and down and tiltably left or right.
One aspect of a preferred embodiment of the present invention is the use of spring loaded telescoping rods to achieve the desired movement of the cover panels. Another aspect of a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes stop limits on the telescoping rods.
One aspect of a preferred embodiment of the present invention is the use of cover panels having flat rectangular surfaces. Another aspect of a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a smooth material on the inside of the cover panel.
These and other features of the preferred embodiment are discussed or will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention.